A patient with a Neuralink chip played chess.

Neuralink conducted a live broadcast on social network X (formerly Twitter), where 29-year-old Nolan Arbaugh, who was paralyzed below the shoulders about eight years ago, played chess thanks to a chip with a neurocomputer interface installed in his brain. This is the first human demonstration of the chip from Neuralink. According to Arbo, he uses the Neuralink interface to play computer games and, in general, his quality of life has improved significantly.

Information (such as sound, tactile sensations, and even brain activity data) is fed into the computer, analyzed, and transmitted to the brain via stimulation of cells in the central or peripheral nervous system. All this can happen completely bypassing the natural organs of perception and is successfully used to replace them.

According to Alexander Kaplan, neurophysiologist, Doctor of Biological Sciences and founder of the Laboratory of Neurophysiology and Neurointerfaces at Moscow State University, there are currently no theoretical limitations for equipping humans with artificial sensory "organs" connected directly to brain structures. Moreover, they are being actively introduced into everyday human life, for example, to replace broken natural sensory organs.

On January 30, 2024, Ilon Musk announced that for the first time a person was implanted with a Neuralink chip in the brain. According to the head of the company, the patient's recovery was going well, he registered bursts of neural activity. The selection of volunteers with tetraplegia (paralysis of all four limbs) began in September 2023. At the moment, the company does not say how many volunteers have received the chip and how they feel.